walking the winding path of modern polytheism
As I develop and publish aspects of my cultus to the Twelve, I feel it would be helpful to also lay out how I see Frīg and the role She has come to play in my cosmology and worldview. The Twelve are Her court, Her confidantes and Handmaidens, and Their roles and importance to me are interlinked with Hers.
Continue reading “On Frīg and Her position in my cosmology”
Ār is the OE counterpart of Eir. In the Prose Edda, Eir is cited as a Goddess who is a great physician [1]. Her name is also included in a list of Valkyrie names [2]. In the Fjolsvinnsmal, She is listed as one of several maidens who serve the Goddess Menglöð, who if offered to will protect men from danger and pestilence [3].
The University of Texas Indo-European lexicon lists Eir as related to the ON verb eira, to spare or protect, and noun æra, glory or honour [4]. The related OE words include ār, meaning both glory or honour and kindness [5]. This is the word I have chosen for the name of my Eir counterpart.
Continue reading “Ār (Eir)”
Geofen is the Old English counterpart of Gefjon. Gefjon is the most widely attested of the Twelve. In the Lokasenna [1], She challenges Loki as to why He is causing arguments between the Gods. Loki retaliates by relating an incident when a youth gave Gefjon a necklace and She slept with him in return; Odin then says Loki is mad to make Her angry, as She sees the wyrd of all as well as Odin does. In the Prose Edda [2], it is stated that She is a virgin and is attended by all those who die as virgins.
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Fulla is described in the Prose Edda [1] as a maiden Goddess, with free-flowing hair bound by a gold band. She carries Frigga’s ash box, looks after her footwear, and Frigga confides secrets in her. In the Grimnismal [2], Fulla acts as Frigga’s agent in Her wager with Odin. She warns Frigga’s favourite that a magician (Odin in disguise) is coming to trick him, and how to detect him, thus throwing the contest in Frigga’s favour. Fulla is also cited in kennings for gold [3]. A counterpart of Fulla, Volla, is mentioned in the Old High German “horse cure” Merseburg Charm [4]. She is one of several Gods stated to sing charms to heal Balder’s horse, and is said to be the sister of Friia, the counterpart of Frigga and Frīg.
Fulla, translated as Bountiful, is one of those ON words that translates directly into OE. In OE it may simply be translated as fullness, though the Bosworth Toller [5] gives an appealing definition including “the highest stage reached by anything, the perfection, perfect specimen of a kind or class“. This gives Fulla’s name a connotation not just of fullness, bounty and fertility, but highness and perfection. This fits with my idea of the Handmaidens as exemplifying different virtues or ways of living.
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Hlēowen is the Old English counterpart of Hlín. In the Prose Edda, it is stated that She has the role of protecting those Frigga wishes to save from danger [1]. The Voluspa describes the death of Odin at Ragnarok as a hurt or sorrow for Hlín [2].
Hlín’s name is said to mean Protector, deriving from an obscure ON verb hleina, with a related noun hleinir, which means something like “refuge” or “peace and quiet”. This is related to OE hlinian, to lean, lie down, rest [3]. That is to say, She is one who others lean on, who provides refuge, peace and protection, who comforts those in grief and hardship. My name for Her [4] comes not from hlinian, but hlēonian, meaning to shelter, protect, or take care (hlēow) of – meaning something like Protection-Woman, or poetically, She Who Shelters.
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Over the last weeks and months I have been working on (and will doubtless continue to work on over the coming weeks and months) a primer and devotional to the group of twelve Goddesses known sometimes in Norse Heathenry as Frigga’s Handmaidens. As I finish segments of this, I will be posting them here, and plan eventually to collate them into a downloadable format. As such, I want to begin with an introduction to these Goddesses, what this project is about, and why I embarked on it.
Continue reading “Handmaidens Project Introduction”
On the Heathen Discord server Skíðblaðnir, I was recently involved in highly interesting discussions around the concept of a “framing narrative” for reconstruction. That is, defining for yourself a narrative around the person, or group of people, whose practices you wish to reconstruct. How our pre-Christian Ancestors lived and worshipped varied through time and in different communities, [1] so there’s an almost infinite array of possibilities here. Having a narrative helps focus and prevent you from running off down every intriguing side-path. (Hopefully. There are a lot of intriguing side-paths in this religion.)
For me personally, I have historically been Norse-focused perhaps by default, but also because my Heathen path began with a strong personal connection to Òðinn. I have close relations with other Norse Gods, most notably Sif and Frigga, as well as the Goddesses known by some as “Frigga’s Handmaidens”. However, I have recently felt a strong pull towards a more Old English mode of Heathenry. I have also increasingly felt that the aspects of the All-Father I have had a deep relationship with are perhaps more represented by Wōden than Òðinn per se (as described in [2]).
During conversation on this on Skid, the idea of Danelaw Heathenry was mentioned. This was something I had been tentatively thinking about, and others suggesting it felt like a nudge in the right direction.
The old Danelaw, where I and my mother’s side of the family were born and bred, is an area of England where the Danish Vikings ruled. This formal territory existed for approximately a century between the mid-800s to the mid-900s. However there was a wider period of Danish and Norse colonisation and cultural mixing with the Old English beyond the strictly-defined Danelaw, the influence of which can be observed today in place-names and dialect [3]. “Viking England” or “Anglo-Scandinavian England” might be a more correct term, however at this time I feel “Danelaw” suits my purposes because it is culturally well understood and the term used in modern Britain for this aspect of our history.
Instinctively I would focus my narrative around York, famously a centre of Viking culture in England, and Yorkshire in general. Of course I will take in evidence from the rest of the Danelaw, but as this is both where my personal roots are and a key part of the Danelaw it makes sense. I also aim to reconstruct the religion of ordinary people, farmers and craftsmen, rather than the elite or aristocracy. I imagine the persona whose religion I am working towards being a woman of mixed Anglo-Saxon and Danish/Viking heritage.
Having this focus and purpose in mind, and undertaking a project of reconstruction myself rather than simply building on that of others, feels like an incredible step forward for me. I’m sure this will be a difficult undertaking, that I will need help and will make mistakes, but I am happy and proud that I am taking this challenge.
References
wandering blackbird 